Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Trigger Warnings

Rebel's prompt this week is about trigger warnings, and to
be honest I have been pondering which way to go with it. I don't usually follow
the prompt but this one seems right up my street as I write erotica and illness,
necrophillia, domesitc violence, murder etc. so most of my work could have some
form of trigger warnings on it. Indeed on some of the ones I feel are more
extreme I put something up at the front about people of a delicate disposition
should look away.

There were several ways I could have gone with this. I could
have written something heinous that set off some people's triggers. I could
write about censorship and the compulsory trigger warnings on writing and
books. However I was taught that if you are going to comment on things then
'add value'. I think if I went down that route then I would not be adding
anything to the argument, just adding hot air.

Thus, I wanted to talk about something that I am passionate
about in the frame of trigger warnings. I want to talk about intelligence.

In my working life I come across people if all shapes and
sizes and intellects including learning difficulty (IQ of 80-90) and learning
disability (IQ of 80 or less), as well as exceptionally brainy people (IQ of 150+). I need to communicate to all of these people, using a variety of
different methods. I do not have any difficulty in communicating with them in a
way that makes sense to them. One thing that I do not do, I never do, is dumb
things down. I treat them like articulate human beings, because they are.
Individuals with a unique sense of self and self identity.

I see trigger warnings on things on Fetlife where it may or
may not be appropriate. What I find is that the 'trigger' is usually
insignificant to me as a reader but of huge import to the author. I find them
an irritation because they preclude me from thinking and making my own choices,
if I want to read the article or not without explaining explicitly what the
content is. I find that mildly offensive at the time and very offensive when I
reflect upon it.

We title things to give people an idea of what the contents
are. There is blurb on the back of books, DVD's, games and so on to give us
more of an idea of the content so we can make an informed choice. That is why
they are there so we know approximately what it is all about. Our curiosity
takes us further if we want to. What is the point of getting a book if I
already know what happens in it?

I am a huge fan of series like Wonders of the Solar System
and Blue Planet. They cover topics that I know nothing about but pitch it at
such a level so that I do not feel stupid but that it is engaging and
educational. It is poles apart from Americana-esqe programmes which dumb things
down to the lowest common denominator, instead or presuming that their audience
has some modicum of intelligence. Spoon feeding is a huge turn off to
intellectual engagement of the subject, at any level and at any age.

So let's examine the lowest common denominator for a second.
The average IQ is 100 and I have yet to meet a person who does not want to be
considered as an individual, a unique being. From that it is the right to make
their own choices, what they want to wear, what they want to watch, what they
want to read. They customise social media sites to suite them such as Twitter
and Facebook. No one has a Twitter account full of Conservative party announcements
when they are interested in elephant riding and not politics. They choose. They
are selective.

McDonald's now famous warning sign of 'hot contents' when
you buy a hot beverage is not a warning to protect people, it is a legal back
covering exercise. I do not know of anybody, including people with learning
disabilities, who are not aware that a cup of coffee will be hot. It does not come
as a surprise to them. Therefore, it is not out of concern for the customer, it
is out of concern for themselves, much like trigger warning where the concern
is to relieve the uncomfortable feelings of the author.

I am all for warnings about explicit lyrics and age ratings
as there does need to be some regulation; some way of knowing if it is age
appropriate or contains offensive material. To be able to read my blog you have
to acknowledge that you are over 18 and readers are warned that it contains
adult content. I am for correct descriptions of things, accurate blurbs and
titles. I am all for individual choices. The UK Mental Capacity Act states that
we have the right to make unwise choices (I love that bit about it, it always
makes me smile). Trigger warnings take away that right to choose, they take
away any level of intelligence to make a judgement whether or not we want to
read or watch something.

I am in such a minority with this, but the more I think about it, the more I am certain I need them. As a writer.

I would not write my edgier stories if I was not able to put a content advisory on the front of the story. I couldn't do it, I would feel like I was writing something heinous and not have the ability to warn my readers that this was not my usual stuff.

That content advisory is a bit like the McDonalds sign; it is as much for me as it is for the consumer. They give me freedom to warn. Whether that makes me weak or misguided, I don't know, but the content advisories will stay on my work where appropriate because I don't want to spring a surprise on anyone.

And the Government legislating for unwise choices; LOL. Is that bit for Mr Clegg?!

It's all about context.If you are browsing a BDSM website, I would expect images and comment that may cause triggers, likewise a sex blog.If a cookery blog suddenly went into graphic details of the gang rape of the author, yes, that needs a TW.